Lumberland crew uses new airboat to help save deer

LUMBERLAND — A group of Lumberland firefighters rescued a deer that became trapped on the frozen Delaware River after falling through the ice on Friday morning.

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By Leonard Sparks

recordonline.com

By Leonard Sparks

Posted Jan. 6, 2013 at 2:00 AM

By Leonard Sparks
Posted Jan. 6, 2013 at 2:00 AM

» Social News

LUMBERLAND — A group of Lumberland firefighters rescued a deer that became trapped on the frozen Delaware River after falling through the ice on Friday morning.

Bosco Hunt Jr., Ann Steimle and her son James Steimle pulled the doe to safety near the Pond Eddy Bridge. The rescue was the first made using a new airboat the department purchased in August.

"It just made my day," Ann Steimle said. "It was an amazing feeling."

The rescue began about 11:15 a.m. with a call about a trapped deer.

One crew, led by Chief Eric Robles, scouted the scene while Hunt and the Steimles readied the airboat. They decided to launch at Knights Eddy, about four miles south of the deer's location, for safety reasons.

"It just slid right into the water and away we went," Steimle said.

They found the deer trapped in a 2-foot hole, it's shoulders and head visible as it clawed and kicked with its front feet.

They used a lasso to pull the deer onto the boat. Steimle covered the drenched animal with her body and tucked the hoofs in case the deer started flailing.

An audience of onlookers had gathered by the time the airboat returned to shore. The deer was then transported to the firehouse where firefighters rubbed it down with towels.

At some point the deer stood up, and the firefighters released it into the woods behind the firehouse. Steimle wants to have the image of a deer hoof put onto the side of the airboat in honor of its first rescue.

"I was so grateful that we could do something for this little animal," she said. "And not only that, all of the training that we put into this airboat, it was a great piece of machinery."